Financial close was delayed due to the economic crisis in Spain in 2009, which affected the negotiation between the Project Company and its lenders, and delayed an agreement. However, the Project Company chose to begin the design and construction works in August 2009, before financial close had been reached. Financial close didn't occur until November 2010, so this meant that the design and construction for both the tramway and the rolling stock were mainly financed by the Project Company's equity investors for the first 15 months, although some financing was also provided by the Procuring Authority in these early stages. The first phase of the tramway system was inaugurated in April 2011.

The decision to start construction works and take the risk for the costs of the construction phase for more than a year demonstrates the scale of risk taken by the equity investors and their commitment to the project.